Shakespeare's Moments
by shikshiinjr
Summary: Cheng Li has been keeping a secret from her crew. It involves one of her father's books and… Shakespeare. So, what happens if Connor comes along and catches her in the act? Will chaos ensue? Older Teens ::Cheng Li x Connor OneShot::


**Yo! WHOOT! School holidays are here! Yay! I can't wait 'till next term… I think that's when we start short stories… Well, this is my first ever Vampirates Fic so be nice. Oh, the pairing is Cheng Li x Connor so if ya don't like, then don't read. It's as simple as that. **

**I have no idea where this idea came from; maybe it's because were doing Shakespeare this term and the next. At first, I was like, "urrgh, sappy stuff', but it's ok I guess. Oh, this is set… where Cheng Li is already captain but does have a minor reference to **_**Empire of Night**_**. **

**Hmmm, I know this is kinda extending the A/N a bit, but: does Connor look like Oz from Pandora Hearts to you guys? I mean, how Connor is described is nearly like Oz. Except, I don't know if Connor is shota or not… but I certainly made his personality like that in here, huh…**

**Title: **Shakespeare's Moments

**Pairing:** Cheng Li x Connor

**Genre:** Romance/Humour

**Summary:** Cheng Li has been keeping a secret from her crew. It involves one of her father's books and… Shakespeare. So, what happens if Connor comes along and catches her in the act? Will chaos ensue? Older Teens ::Cheng Li x Connor OneShot::

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><p><strong>OneShot<strong>

A calm wind whipped around the night air. The creaking wood of ship's hulls rose up and down in rhythmic dancing as they drifted in the serene water's below. Loud music and endless chatting wafted over from the building known as _Ma Kettle's Tavern_. A lone figure sat in the shroud of a ship, beige eyes flickering over a large volumed book which had recently come into her possession. Cheng Li was the girl's name, and she was the nineteen year old captain of her ship, _The Tiger_.

Rubbing her tired eyes, Cheng Li glanced at the festivities of _Ma Kettle's_. She really didn't care for a drink at that moment. Leaning back on the net-like structure, she hooked her legs one level higher and the large book slid down to rest comfortably on her waist. She stared at the ever-glowing moon, the rays sliding down her face.

Cheng Li felt calm and serene, happy to at least get some alone time for herself. An uproar of amused shouts and rowdy laughter switched her gaze over onto _Ma Kettle's_ once again.

She had taken her crew to _Ma Kettle's_ of course, but so that they could say goodbye. Cheng Li had announced to them that she planned to sire them to a different tavern, which they didn't look to happy about. Upon questioning, Cheng Li told them that _Ma Kettle's_ was overrated and that it was time to make their own path to greatness, even if it involved going to a new tavern other than the one that served a lot of tradition for pirates. Nonetheless, she expected her whole crew to get themselves wasted for the night, to drink away the sorrow of their last visit for a long time.

A lapse of silence settled around Cheng Li once again as the tavern uncharacteristically quietened down to a murmur. A sudden shiver jolted down her spine as she stiffened slightly, sensing a pair of eyes searing into her back. Shutting her book with an audible snap, she turned sharply and almost fell out of the rigging as she did.

A very close Connor Tempest was eyeing her diligently, which was unnerving to say in the least. As to why he was on _The Tiger_ and not in _Ma Kettle's_ was slightly confusing and Cheng Li frowned in thought.

"Cheng Li!" the fourteen year old finally blurted out happily, throwing his arms up high. Cheng Li eyed her prize warrior in worry, wondering what was wrong with the boy. Connor smiled at her, his emerald eyes sparkling in the moonlight.

"Connor," Cheng Li replied back in acknowledgement, although definitely not as enthusiastic as Connor. Said boy beamed at her and wandered away around the deck. Cheng Li briefly wondered if the boy was drunk and watched his even gait, eventually deciding against her theory. She sighed and opened the big book once again to the page she had marked. After a while, she felt the same eyes on her once more and shut her eyes in irritation.

"Cheng Li!" Connor cried once again, popping up on her left side. Cheng Li never looked up from her book as she muttered his name back in response. Connor pouted and receded back to his original position walking around the deck of the ship. Cheng Li continued reading quietly, her whole mind focused on the book. As she flicked a page over, Cheng Li finally noticed the absence of Connors footsteps and breathed out a sigh of relief; at least the boy was gone. Suddenly, strong arms rounded her thin waist and she jumped, fumbling with the book that threatened to fall into the depths of the ocean.

"Connor!" Cheng Li shouted in exasperated protest, clutching the old book tightly in her arms. The boy beamed at her from behind and climbed the rigging until he was level with her body, arms still wrapped around her waist.

"Cheng Li," he responded back cheekily, rivalling her annoyed tone which lacked the enthusiasm Connor had used. Cheng Li's face reddened.

"So… what'cha readin', captain?" Connor asked in curiosity, leaning over Cheng Li's shoulder to get a closer look at the old book. The latter eyed him wearily.

"It's actually none of your business, Tempest," Cheng Li sniffed, causing Connor to pout once again. He jumped off the shroud and continued to walk around. Cheng Li felt a pang of loneliness and wished she was near the boy again. It wasn't easy to be a captain and Connor was one of her few friends she could confide in and even felt comfortable near. Not that she'd ever tell anybody; her reputation hung in the balance.

She didn't, however, want him to know what book she was reading. It was an old copy. She had found the book while searching through the piles of her father's belongings. She had been intrigued, so to say, on why her father had a Shakespeare book hidden under all his ruthlessness. Sure, the romance was refreshing, but Cheng Li loved all the tragedy that happened unto the characters. It was also why Cheng Li had not shown Connor. No doubt he knew who Shakespeare was and how love-happy-sappy his stories were. Heck, if any of her crew found out, she would be toast. Her reputation, once again, was hanging on the line whenever she read the voluminous book, but it hardly got shattered since she always read it when she knew she was alone. Knowing that Connor was on board, Cheng Li knew that she had to be more careful.

Unbeknownst to her as she mentally battled with her mind, Connor had climbed up the rigging of the ship and had tied himself to a rope. He was slightly hurt that Cheng Li was paying more attention to a book other than him and decided to do something about it. He chuckled lightly as he pushed himself off the mast and swung through the air, rapidly approaching the reading girl. Almost on Cheng Li, Connor flipped upside down and grabbed the thick book from the unsuspecting girl's hands. Groaning as she failed to grip the shroud in time from her surprise, Cheng Li ploughed forward into the ocean.

"Connor!" she screamed in frustration as she jumped out of the water and hauled herself swiftly up a rope that the latter had leant down for her. The younger boy was laughing in hysterics, clutching his sides in pain. Not watching what he was doing, the rope slipped perilously from his grip and sent a livid Cheng Li back into the ocean once more. Connor fell to the ground, rolling in pain on the deck. Embarrassed, Cheng Li swam back to shore and stomped up the gangplank leading to the deck, her face red. Connor nimbly jumped up and ran like a disobedient boy who had just been found out, Cheng Li charging after him.

He still held the book in his arms as he quickly dodged his captain's katana, the sword protruding cleanly from the side of the ship. Cheng Li tugged the katana out as she passed and switched path's, hoping to block the boy off. As Connor neared the bow, he realised his mistake and turned, his eyes displaying both horror and fear as he eyed a very dangerous and wet Cheng Li.

Connor smirked, causing the pirate captain to look startled and her tough face faltered. He held up the book, as if it could block all the rage she through his way. "I know what you were reading captain," he chuckled, poking his tongue out in confidence.

"Is that what you were laughing about when I fell in?" Cheng Li scowled, clearly embarrassed.

"Maybe," Connor shrugged, "but I guess it was also the fact that you fell in. Anyway, if you punish me, I'll leak your secret."

Cheng Li was torn. She couldn't kill the boy; he was one of her prize warriors. She couldn't punish him either, or he would run off tattling. Her reputation was now hanging uncharacteristically on the line. Cheng Li mentally berated herself on what to do as she glared daggers at the smug young man. She felt helpless but it never showed on her disciplined and trained-of-emotions face. Right now, the inner turmoil of her thoughts weighed heavily on her next action. Finally, calming her turbulent mind, Cheng Li sighed and turned away, walking towards her cabin. It was hard to admit, but Connor Tempest had won.

Scowling as she slipped into her bathroom, she momentarily felt glad they had gotten a re-stock of water. Even though she wouldn't have normally had a shower in normal circumstances, she felt the need to stay clean and fresh before her and the crew departed again. She groaned as the water poured onto her body and quickly washed herself, the familiar spray of the sea leaving her scent. 'No worries,' she told herself calmly, 'it will have come back tomorrow.' Wrapping a clean towel to pull up her hair, she stepped out of the shower and padded into her cabin, where incidentally, Connor had just walked into. The two stopped short and stared at each other, too shocked to say anything.

Cheng Li's mind was blank, which was surprising, and her face showed signs of… well, nothing as she stood with only a towel wrapped around her head. Connor was also in shock. It wasn't every day, rarely even, that he walked in on a naked girl with a thin lithe body, bronze skin and charcoal black hair. Without knowing it, he let out an appreciative whistle.

Cheng Li's face reddened so suddenly that Connor was startled into movement and she tackled his to the ground, shouting at him with intense anger. The two wrestled for a moment with Cheng Li in control, flying insults in her wake. Connor attempted to throw the older girl off, but restrained himself from letting his arms roam any lower than her shoulders. He tried to ignore the feeling of her breasts on his chest; the way her legs parted on either side of his own leg; the way she was laying on top of him to stop him from moving.

Finally, Connor flipped them over and retaliated, claiming that he had come to apologise and had wanted to give her book back. The two growled at each other and then stopped, suddenly noticing how close they were to the other.

Captivated, Connor intertwined his right hand with her left and left the other to snake into her dark curls. He slowly advanced on his captain, his mind screaming for his body to stop but completely surrendering to his lust. Cheng Li's breath hitched as she let him inch closer, her eyes glazing when they were a finger width apart, wondering what the hell she was doing.

So who better to barge into the captain's quarters at that precise moment than Bartholomew Pearce. Indeed, it just so happened that he barged into there, intended to tell the captain of an incident to do with the crew from _The Diablo_ and her own overprotected crew, when he saw Connor rested on top of a very naked Cheng Li. A moment of shock registered on his face. Backing away, as if he hadn't walked into something as awkward as what he was witnessing at that moment, Bart hastily said, "um, sorry to um… bother you both. I'll go sort it out, you two… go back to, uhm… I'll just… uh… goodbye."

And with that, he was off. Connor and Cheng Li could hear his loud unstable footsteps echoing through the ship, the same familiar voice yelling out, 'OH DEAR GOD, MY EYES!', as he was, undoubtedly, off to tell everyone of the scene he had just witnessed.

Cheng Li's erratic heart beat was felt through Connor's shirt as they lay on top of her, her arms spread out beside her head. Connor turned to look at her face, carefully restraining himself from looking anywhere else. Cheng Li sent him a murderous glare, the semblance of a moment that they had shattered into little tiny miniscule pieces. The foetid foulness of her expression tore through his weedy look and he was sheepish as he got off of her. Connor pulled Cheng Li up with him, only to be stopped by his toned body and his strong, but skinny arms. She was surprised at how tall he was as her chin barely reached over his shoulders. Her head rested in the crook of his neck as they stood rigid in place for a moment, enjoying each other's company. Pulling away, Cheng Li grabbed the towel from her head and wrapped it around her body. Connor cleared his throat and handed her back the book he had taken and walked nervously toward the door, not sure about what his actions would do to their friendship.

An arm stopped his progression and Cheng Li leaned over him whispering, "this never happened Tempest. I never read Shakespeare and even if you tell anybody, I'm going to ignore you and pretend it never happened. Oh, and I don't think Bart will remember anything much other than his hangover; that's all I want him to remember."

Connor gave a curt nod and continued toward the door of the cabin. Cheng Li sighed and ran a hand through her tousled locks, confused on what had just happened.

"Cheng Li," Connor's voice came from behind the door. Said captain looked up irritably, annoyed at the way her cheeks flushed as his eyes roamed her towel-clad body. "You've got a really hot body, did you know that," he finished cheekily, winking at her in amusement. Cheng Li blinked as the emerald-eyed boy disappeared into the corridors and found herself cursing the fiendish bastard as her cheeks lit up even more with a rosy hue.

"TEMPEST!" she finally shouted.

"The lady doth protest too much," Connor muttered to himself, grinning like an idiot as he walked smugly away.

**Fin**

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><p><strong>Soooo… how was it? I'm sorry if I'm wrong with anything. I haven't read the series in a while. It wasn't too corny? Well, everyone seems really OOC in here so, I dunno. It's for you to know and for me to find out. Please review! :P<strong>


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